Born in Dover, Delaware in 1845, George Handy Bates was a lawyer who transitioned to Delaware politics by the early 1880s. In 1889, Bates was appointed by President Grover Cleveland as a special agent responsible for investigating the conditions in Samoa. He spent a great deal of time in there, and later in Fiji, Hawaii, New Zealand, and Tonga. His papers were donated to the University of Delaware Library after he passed away in 1916, and they include correspondence, documents, memoranda, and photographs. This digital collection brings together over 140 albumen print photographs of the people and scenic views Bates encountered during his travels. Here users will find images of Tongan village life, early churches, and vistas that look out onto the nearby waters. It's quite a collection, and one that will be of interest to those with a passion for 19th century photography and the history of the Pacific Island region.